Murder On Bwytheney by Elizabeth. Newby (adult books to read .txt) 📕

“Bronwen said they were at home together?” asked Jo.

"Yeah, we were all having a catch-up, and she came over. It was really awkward. I think she wanted us to invite her to join us or something,” said Emma. She then turned to me, “And what do you mean out of date rumour? I heard nothing of it until recently.”

Before I could wheedle my way out of dropping myself in it, Jo interrupted, “Matthew was definitely not at home all night. I saw him heading down the lane from the hills. Looked like he’d been out for a walk.”

“What?” said Emma, “but that would make Matthew a suspect, wouldn't it? Lying about where he was and being out that night?”

“Or Bronwen,” suggested Caz as she topped up her glass of wine. “Let’s not forget it was her who lied. Wife finds out about her husband’s affair – wasn’t jealousy one of the reasons you said people killed, Cara?”

“Yes, I did say that. But there’s no proof of an affair.”

"Maybe not, but I did see them together up at Brynness when I was out that way to check on some cattle. I thought it was odd at the time.”

“Okay, before you all get carried away,” I said, “let’s remember that Pete has also been killed. What’s the connection? Why would Bronwen or Matthew kill Pete?”

Caz sighed, “way to kill our fun,” she rolled her eyes in jest, “you’re right, of course. Maybe we should stick to the whodunnit books we’re reading and leave the detective work to you, Cara.”

"Because you're great at guessing whodunnit in the books, aren't you, Caz? Didn't you once guess it was the dog?" said Emma as she burst out laughing.

“Hey, I told you. I hadn’t really read the book with the kids and everything. I just picked a character’s name at random.”

All of us were now holding our stomachs, laughing at the memory. Caz could always be relied upon to reduce us to giggles.

Jo finished off her glass of wine and turned to me, “So, do you have any ideas about who might be responsible?”

I placed my glass down and bent down to stroke, Shadow, “Not yet. Find the connection between Melissa and Peter, and you find the killer."

“I wonder what will happen to the campsite now. I guess it'll get sold or something. It would be a shame to lose it,” said Emma.

The campsite was a vital part of the island bringing many tourists to its shores during warmer months. It was a lifeline for many of the other businesses in Islethorpe and further afield.

“I don’t know,” I said, “an old friend of Melissa’s is taking care of things at the moment, but if it goes up for sale, I reckon Gregory will snatch it up."

Something else was bothering me too. Bronwen and Peter weren’t the only people who had lied to me about their whereabouts the night Melissa was killed. There was Gregory too, and I also saw him leaving Melissa's that day in a foul mood. He wanted her land but was that a reason to kill someone? And what could that have to do with Pete? Right now, nothing made sense. But I could also feel another thought forming, a hunch of some kind. I couldn’t touch it quite yet. But it would come in time.

Chapter 12

Now and again, I liked to have a change of scenery while I work on a manuscript or the blog. When it was warm and not too sunny, I would head for one of the island’s many picnic benches where Shadow could wander, and I could enjoy nature while writing. But on days like this where there was a chill in the air, I would plonk myself in the corner of Cupcake Café. All I needed was my laptop and WiFi.

With a second murder on the island, I couldn’t avoid writing about it any longer, but I was struggling to strike the right balance. The idea that a possible serial killer was roaming the isle was not exactly inviting for tourists, but Bwytheney relied on them.

I sipped my black americano and saw Bronwen making her way in my direction. The book club conversation started running through my mind. If the rumours were true, I should feel sorry for Bronwen, but all I could think about was her lie. Maybe this would be an opportunity to do a little digging.

“Hey Cara, mind if I sit down here?”

“Sure, go ahead.”

“Are you writing about the murders? For your blog, I mean.”

“Yeah, I can’t avoid it any longer. The comments are getting a bit bonkers. The small post I put up initially held the tide back for a bit but now with Pete too…”

“It’s so shocking. I can’t make any sense of it. How are you doing? I heard it was you who found him?”

“I’m okay. He was just lying there. I thought he was ill or something. How did you find out? News always spreads fast here.”

“We were at The Bell Inn having a meal. We were celebrating our wedding anniversary, actually. Georgewas working behind the bar and got a phone call from a mate who lives in one of the other cottages. Before you knew it, the whole pub was talking about it.  We never did get our desserts.”

Desserts? She’s thinking of desserts when a man has lost his life? Bronwen always managed to annoy me, somehow. There was never anything specific. She just irritated me every time we spoke. But at least it would be easy enough to check out this alibi and make sure she and Matthew were at the pub.

“And you didn’t see anything odd the day Melissa was killed? No visitors or anything?”

“Not a thing. You would think that I would hear or see something being just next door. But it seemed like any other evening. I was binge-watching Real Housewives – it's my guilty pleasure."

“I bet Matthew loved that!”

“Haha, not a chance. He shut himself away in his study to catch up